Things to know about DNS firewall

Individuals and companies should both approach online security the same way they would approach the physical safety of their home or business. DNS firewall is of utmost importance since DNS software has become a favorite target for hackers, which poses a serious security concern. Below are some effective ways of locking down DNS servers.

Use DNS forwarders
A DNS server performing DNS queries on behalf of other DNS servers is known as a DNS forwarder. The main purpose of using a DNS forwarder is to take advantage of the potentially larger DNS cache featured and offload the DNS server of processing duties by forwarding the query to the DNS forwarder. A DNS forwarder also prevents the interaction of the DNS server that forwards requests and Internet DNS servers, which is especially important when the DNS server is hosting internal domain DNS resource records. Configure your internal DNS server such that it uses a forwarder for every domain for which it isn’t authoritative.Use DNS advertisers
DNS advertisers are DNS servers that resolve queries for the domains they are authoritative. For instance, if you host resources that are publicly available for corp.com and domain.com, your public DNS server is configured with DNS zone files for both domains. DNS advertisers only answer queries for the domains they are authoritative. The DNS server won’t perform recursion for queries to any other DNS server, which prevents the use of your public DNS server in resolving names in other domains. This will increase your level of security by reducing the risks associated with operating a public DNS resolver.Use caching-only DNS servers
Caching-only DNS servers are not authoritative for any DNS domains but configured to use a forwarder or perform recursion. Upon receiving a response, caching-only DNS servers cache the results and relay answers to the system that issued the DNS query. Caching-only DNS servers can amass a huge cache of DNS responses over time, which will definitely improve DNS response times for every DNS customer of that particular server. When employed as forwarders under your administrative control, caching-only DNS servers can enhance security levels.There is a small chance that your conventional firewall defenses can keep up with every tactic utilized by malware such as the use of alterations and hostnames with regards to IP addresses. A well-maintained DNS firewall is, however, capable of preventing such malicious hostnames from accessing DNS information, which not only prevents the connection but also diverts traffic away from the infected computer and towards a secure server for inspection. By implementing this single layer of protection, organizations can, therefore, minimize the risk of data loss and effectively check approximately 80% of existing malware. Such an approach is, therefore, important when it comes to ensuring a company’s security, especially since it has proven to be highly effective.